US Senate ahead of vote on Nord Stream 2 sanctions

Created: 01/13/2022, 04:45 AM

A sign reading "Nord Stream 2 Committed Reliable Safe" at an information point for the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. © Stefan Sauer / dpa

The Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline remains a bone of contention in relations with the United States.

The Republicans now want to force President Biden to take a harder line against the Russian-German project.

Washington - The US Senate is due to vote this Thursday on a bill to tighten sanctions against the German-Russian Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.

For a success, the project introduced by the Republicans in the Congress Chamber would need 60 of the 100 votes.

The Republicans themselves only control 50 votes.

One of the aims of the project launched by Senator Ted Cruz is to deny US President Joe Biden the opportunity to arbitrarily issue exceptions to the US sanctions for Nord Stream 2 for reasons of national security.

The debate on the project is to begin in the Senate on Thursday morning (local time; around 4 p.m. CET), according to a message from the Congress Chamber on Wednesday evening.

The vote should then take place in the afternoon (around 8.45 p.m. CET).

Nord Stream 2 is to bring gas from Russia through the Baltic Sea to Germany, bypassing Ukraine.

The 1230-kilometer double line has been completed but is not yet in operation.

Republicans versus Democrats

The US government has spoken out against the Republican bill.

At first, it seemed unlikely that ten Democrats would vote with the Republicans and against the stated will of their government.

A majority in the Senate for the proposal would initially have no effect without the approval of the House of Representatives.

The Democrats also have a slim majority in the second Chamber of Congress.

Critics see the pipeline primarily as a geopolitical project for Russia.

Many Democrats are therefore against Nord Stream 2, including Biden.

Nevertheless, in May the president had issued special permits, with which Nord Stream 2 AG, based in Switzerland, and its German managing director were spared US sanctions.

This waiver was expressly made out of consideration for the ally Germany.

In order to defuse the dispute with the USA over the pipeline, Germany made a joint declaration in July, among other things, promising stronger support for Ukraine.

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Cruz and other opponents of the pipeline have long been trying to enforce stricter sanctions laws.

At the end of last year they tried to incorporate appropriate changes in the legislative package on the defense budget - without success.

However, the Democratic majority leader in the Senate, Chuck Schumer, agreed with Cruz to allow the initiative to be voted on separately by mid-January.

In return, Cruz ended his blockade in the Senate on the confirmation of numerous ambassadors nominated by Biden.

dpa